‘Stolen Vehicle’ Linked to Murder

According to a report in the Fresno Bee, state investigators and Madera County Sheriff John Anderson reported the May 15 arrest of Tracy Ann Tavares, a 26-year-old Fresno resident, on suspicion of insurance fraud related to the murder of another young woman. The arrest was made by Madera County sheriff’s detectives and California Bureau of Investigation agents.

The case dates back to July 4, 1997, when the body of a California State University, Fresno student, Andrea Born, was found by California Highway Patrol officers investigating a burning object in an orchard in Madera County. Jacob Lee Travis, 31, was arrested early in 2001 on suspicion of fatally shooting Born the night she attended a Fourth of July party in the company of Travis and another unnamed male.

Tavares was identified by investigators as being the current girlfriend of Travis, who is currently in the Madera County Jail awaiting a court date set for June 14, 2001. Four days after the discovery of Born’s body in the orchard, July 8, 1997, Tavares allegedly reported the theft of her 1995 Nissan Altima. Tavares and Travis were reportedly together at the time of the reported theft of Tavares’ vehicle, which investigators allege was found to have evidence linking it to Born’s murder.

According to Sheriff Anderson, one month after the reported theft of the Nissan Altima, Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department deputies informed Madera County investigators of the discovery of the vehicle in a garage in Lancaster, Calif.